Polymaker PLA Filament: PolyLite and Panchroma Lines Explained

Polymaker at a glance

Polymaker's online shop (opens in a new tab) describes the brand as making 3D printing filament across PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, TPU, carbon fiber, nylon and other materials, and organizes it into named families such as PolyLite, PolyMax, Fiberon and Panchroma. For PLA buyers, two of those names matter. PolyLite is the everyday family, and Panchroma is the color and finish family that absorbed several older products: Panchroma Matte was previously PolyTerra PLA, and Panchroma Silk was previously PolyLite Silk PLA.

Polymaker also documents its materials in a public wiki (opens in a new tab), which is where most of the figures on this page come from. The renaming is worth keeping in mind when you shop, because older listings and spool labels may still carry the old names.

Picking a Polymaker line

• PolyLite PLA suits functional parts on printers running moderate speeds, and it is the line to pick if you want a 3kg or 5kg spool.
• Panchroma Basic PLA suits buyers who want the fastest Polymaker PLA in a standard, non-specialty finish.
• Panchroma Matte PLA suits display models and prints where you want layer lines softened. It also comes in 3kg.
• Panchroma Silk PLA suits decorative prints with a glossy surface.

All four share one temperature window, so you can swap between them on the same printer without changing heat settings. Speed is where the choice gets real.

PolyLite PLA

The PolyLite PLA wiki page (opens in a new tab) lists 1.75mm filament, a 190 to 230°C nozzle, a 25 to 60°C bed and a printing speed up to 200mm/s. Polymaker's wiki adds that this line is not designed for high speed printing. It ships on a cardboard spool in 1kg, 3kg and 5kg, and Polymaker says all of its spools now have hardened edges that roll well in the AMS.

Panchroma Matte PLA (formerly PolyTerra PLA)

On the Panchroma Matte wiki page (opens in a new tab) Polymaker gives a 190 to 230°C nozzle, a 25 to 60°C bed and speeds up to 300mm/s, on a cardboard spool with the same hardened edge AMS statement. Net weights are 1kg and 3kg. The page text does not state the diameter.

Panchroma Basic PLA

The Panchroma Basic wiki page (opens in a new tab) lists 190 to 230°C, a 25 to 60°C bed and up to 350mm/s, the highest rating of the four. Polymaker says its neat, tangle free winding feeds smoothly in AMS and multi-material setups. It comes in 1kg, and the spool material is not stated on the pages read.

Panchroma Silk PLA

For Panchroma Silk (opens in a new tab) Polymaker lists 190 to 230°C, a 25 to 60°C bed and up to 250mm/s, on a 1kg cardboard spool with the hardened edge AMS statement.

What separates the four lines

With temperatures identical, three things decide it: how fast you print, what finish you want and how much filament you want per spool. The 25°C lower bed limit is a Polymaker trait; several other brands start their bed range at 45 or 50°C. Only PolyLite reaches 5kg. On a spool that large, the price per kg column does the comparing for you: pla.deals divides the offer price by total net filament across the listing, so a 5kg PolyLite reel and a 1kg Panchroma spool can be compared fairly. Our best PLA filament page covers what else to weigh.

Similar brands

• eSUN has matte and silk lines too, but publishes temperatures only for its PLA+ and PLA-Matte.
• Overture offers Matte PLA with a 300mm/s rating, matching Panchroma Matte, and a 50 to 70°C bed range.
• SUNLU sells matte, silk and high speed PLA with full settings tables and a wider weight selector.

Printer suitability

PolyLite PLA is compatible on manufacturer specs with the Bambu Lab A1 and A1 mini and the Creality Ender 3 V3, V3 KE and V3 SE. On the Bambu P1S and H2D it is compatible with a condition, because our rules flag any cardboard spool in the AMS: fit a ring, respool it or use the external holder. That flag stands even though Polymaker states its hardened edge spools roll well in the AMS, so you can weigh the maker's statement against the rule. On the Creality K1, K1 Max and K1C, cap the slicer at Polymaker's 200mm/s.

The three Panchroma lines are not verified on any printer in our data. Their temperatures would fit every machine we track, but Polymaker's page text does not state the filament diameter, and our rules will not confirm a match without it. The P1P and X1 Carbon are not verified for PolyLite either, since the Bambu pages we reached do not give a full spec set.

AMS owners can read our AMS PLA page, and A1 owners our A1 PLA page.

Frequently asked questions

Is Panchroma Matte the same as PolyTerra PLA?

Yes. Polymaker's wiki and shop both say Panchroma Matte PLA was previously known as PolyTerra PLA.

Which Polymaker PLA is fastest?

Panchroma Basic PLA, rated up to 350mm/s. PolyLite PLA is rated up to 200mm/s and is not designed for high speed printing, per Polymaker.

Do Polymaker cardboard spools work in a Bambu AMS?

Polymaker says its spools have hardened edges that roll well in the AMS. Our compatibility rules still list cardboard as a condition on AMS printers.

Does Polymaker sell PLA on large spools?

PolyLite PLA is listed in 1kg, 3kg and 5kg, and Panchroma Matte in 1kg and 3kg.